The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1887-12-29
QUEER ANTIPATHIES.
Peter the Great and His Dread of Water
LambaIle's Horror of Violets.


Lamballe's Horror of Violets.
1t seems absolutely incredible that
Peter the Great, the father of the Rus
sian navy. should shudder at the sight
of water, whether running or still, yet
SO it was, especially when alone. His
palace gardens, beautiful as they were,
he never entered, because the river
Mosera flowed through them. His
coachman had orders to avoid all roads
which led past streams, and if COM
PEELED to cross brook or bridge, the
great emperor would sit with closed
windows, in cold perspiration. An
other monarch, James l., the English
Solomon, as he liked to be called, had
many antipathies, chiefly tobacco, ling,
aud pork. He never overcame his in
ability to look with composure at a
drawn sword; and it is said that on one
occasion, when giving the accolade,
the king turned his face aside, nearly
wOunding the new-made knight.
Henry Ill. of France had so great a
dislike to cats that he tainted at the
sight of one. We suppose that in this
case the cat had to waive its proverbial
prerogative and could not look at a
king. This will seem as absurd as ex-
traordinary to lady lovers of that much
petted animal, but what are we to say
of the countess of Lamballe. of unhap-
py history, to whom a violet was a
thing of horror? Even this is not
without its precedent, for it is on re-
cord that Vincent the painter was
seized with vertigo and swooned at the
smell of roses. Scaliger states that
one Of his relations was made i'll at the
sight of lily, and he himself would
turn pale at the sight of water-cresses
and could never drink milk.
Charles Kingsley, naturalist as he
was to the core, had a great horror of
spiders; and in ''Glau,us," after saying
that everyone seems to have his an
tipathic animal, continues: Il know
one (himself) bred from his childhood
to zoology by land and sea, and bold
in asserting and honest in feeling that
all without exception is beautiful; who
yet cannot, after handling and petting
and examining, all day long. every
uncouth and venomous beast, avoid
paroxysm of horror at the sight of the
common house-spider."
The writer shares in this dislike to
painful extent; in this case it is inher-
tied from his grandfather. The genial
author of the Turkish Spy says that
he would far prefer sword in hand to
face lion in his desert lair than have
a spider crawl over him in the dark.
The cat, as we have previously men,
toned, has repeatedly been an object
of aversion. The duke of Schomberg.
though q redoubtable soldier. would
not sit in the same room with cat. A
courtier of the Emperor Ferdinand
carried this dislike so far as to bleed
at the nose on hearing cat NEW. A
well-known officer of her majesty's
army, who has proved his strength and
courage in more than one campaign,
turns pale at the sight of a cat. On
one occasion when asked out to dinner,
his host, who was rather skeptical' as
to the reality of this feeling, concealed
a cat in an ottoman in the dining-room.
Dinner was announced and COM
menced, but his guest was evidently
i'll at ease, and at length declared his
inability to go on eating, as he was
sure there was Il cat in the room. An
apparently thorough but unavailing
search was made, but his visitor was
so completely upset that the host, with
many apologies fo: his experiment.
"let the cat out of the bag" and out of
tuC OGIOLudu ut CIC 4<OAd
Lauderdale, on the other hand, de-
clared that the mewing of a cat was to
him sweeter than and music. while he
had the greatest dislike TO the lutte and
the bagpipe. In this latter aversion
he was by no means singular. Dogs,
too, have come in for their share of
dislike. De Musset cordially detested
them. When candidate for the acad-
envy he called upon a prominent mem
ber. At the gate of the chateau dir
ty, ugly dog received him most affec-
tionately and insisted on preceding
him into the drawing-room, De Musset
cursing his friends prediction for the
brute. The academician entered and
they adjourned to the dining-roorh, the
dog at their heels. Selling his oppor-
tunity, the dog placed his muddy paws
upon the spotless cloth and carried of
bonne-bouche. "The wretch wants
shootingr' was De Musset's muttered
thought, but he politely said:
You are fond of dogs. see?"
Fond of dogs?" retorted the acad-
emician; Il hate themr'
"But this animal here?" queried De
Musset. 81 have only tolerated it be-
cause thought it was yours, sir"
''MineT exclaimed the poet; ''the
thought that it was yours alone kept
me from killing himP'-CasselPs Fanss-